Album Review

Much of what's fascinating about the continued growth of the Elephant 6 sphere is that each new project to emerge from the collective seems to shed new light on the records which preceded it, establishing connections and filling in gaps to further expand the concept of a unified musical universe. Seniors and Juniors exists in the space separating the guileless pop euphoria of Of Montreal and the chaotic fantasias of the Music Tapes, the two bands which housed Andy Gonzalez prior to his adoption of the Marshmallow Coast alias. Fractured and eccentric yet strangely affecting, the surface simplicity of these home recordings belies an emotional immediacy which reveals itself further with each listen — the album is so obviously a labor of love that its more awkward moments aren't just forgivable, they're absolutely endearing.

Biography

Formed: 1996 in Athens, GA

Genre: Alternative

Years Active: '90s, '00s, '10s

Yet another branch of the Elephant 6 collective family tree, Marshmallow Coast was the alias of avant popster Andy Gonzales, also a satellite member of both Of Montreal and the Music Tapes. Outside of an EP, The Scent of Credibility, and a split single with Midget & Hairs, Marshmallow Coast was little known prior to the 1999 release of their Kindercore label debut LP, Seniors and Juniors. Released in 2001, Ride the Lightning featured members of Of Montreal as the backing band, while 2003’s Misra-released...